Hi! I am
Riya Janardhan
Author Changemaker Feminist Black Belt Nonprofit CEO
Team USA
Represents the United States in Taekwondo
Jr. Pan American Championship, Queretaro, Mexico (July 2024)
2024 World Taekwondo Championship, Hong Kong (Nov 2024)
Author
50 Ways Teen Girls Can Change the World
As Generation Z enters adulthood, we face a world filled with challenges: ongoing conflicts, extreme poverty, climate change, pollution, and rising inequality. But here’s the power of our generation: our potential to create meaningful change.
Our inner urge to make a difference in the world is strong, but many teens don’t know where to start.
This book is a call to action for teen girls to take charge and make a difference. Inside, Riya has outlined 50 easy-to-implement volunteer projects that require just a few hours a week but can lead to significant impact.
Available later this year on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and bookstores across the US.
Young Ambassador
Riya was selected as a Young Ambassador with Inspiring Girls USA Inc., two years in a row (2023-2025).
Inspiring Girls USA is a nonprofit organization with a mission to raise girls’ aspirations and break down gender stereotypes by introducing girls to incredible role models and engaging them in meaningful conversations about their future.
The organization’s viral #ThisLittleGirlIsMe campaign has reached and inspired over 72 million people in three years.
Founder & CEO, Indie Consulting
Youth Advisory Board Member
As a YAB member of Harvard University’s Making Caring Common project, Riya is passionate about finding ways to reduce gender bias in high schools.
Youth Advisory Board (YAB) members hail from 9 states across the US, representing a diverse and qualified group of candidates selected from applicants in grades 9-12.
“My inspiration is Judy Hopps from the movie Zootopia. She may be small, but she is fierce, optimistic, self-motivated and wants to make the world a better place.” – Riya
Teen Editorial Board Member
The Women’s Media Center is an inclusive feminist organization founded by Jane Fonda, Robin Morgan, and Gloria Steinem. Riya has been an editorial board member at WMC FBomb since January 2023. Her publications have focused on women’s issues ranging from gender pay parity, women in STEM, female representation in parliaments worldwide, advancing gender equality in sports and intersectional feminism.
WMC FBomb was created by and for intersectional teen feminists and provides socially conscious youth with the personal and professional tool of a media platform.
Chairwoman, Promotions Committee
Jr. Board Member, Project ADAM Sacramento
Project ADAM is a nationwide nonprofit initiative to educate teens about heart health and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). It has saved the lives of more than 200 adolescents who went into sudden cardiac arrest.
Riya is currently the Chair of their Promotions Committee and member of the Junior Board. She has been a volunteer with Project ADAM since 10th grade.
2023
Youth Changemaker Gender Equality
Speaker at the United Nations
Ms. Janardhan was recognized as a Youth Changemaker at the 7th 1M1B Activate Impact Summit, United Nations, NYC. She spoke at the United Nations about how online advocacy can reshape feminism and keep it relevant for her generation’s digital natives. She presented Project #PromoteHer, which focuses on bringing awareness to gender inequities in various aspects of society through research, publications, and presentations.
Established in 2014, 1M1B (1 Million for 1 Billion) is a United Nations-accredited non-profit with special consultative status to the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and is associated with the UN Department of Global Communications
Co-Founder
AHCENT Inc.
Ms. Janardhan co-founded AHCENT Inc., a California 501(c)(3) public benefit organization to empower teen girls to work towards accelerating the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG).
The primary objective of the non-profit is to encourage young girls and women to volunteer, help school clubs and nonprofits track their social impact goals, and align them with a particular UN SDG.
In addition to supporting the social media campaign, “Girls, Listen Up!”, the nonprofit is developing a smartphone app called ASPYRE that will allow students to digitally track their volunteer hours.
Social Media Influencer
Girls, Listen Up!
Riya searched social media sites for channels where successful women offered wisdom and advice to teen girls. She couldn’t find any. So she used her personal motivational playlist, which includes quotes and speeches from female athletes, CEOs and celebrities to become part of her “Girls, Listen Up!” social media campaign.
Her mission is to create the largest repository of 60-second video snippets from female icons to educate Gen Z on women’s issues and inspire teen girls worldwide.
2nd International Conference on Women, Colombo, Sri Lanka
Youngest Presenter
Ms. Janardhan presented the research abstract titled, “Reducing disparities in Gender-Related Cardiac Care through early diagnosis of Coronary Artery Disease using Exercise Treadmill Testing.”
Youngest Presenter
3rd International Conference on Women, Bangalore, India
First Degree Black Belt
16+ Medals in Regional and National Taekwondo Competitions
Ms. Janardhan is a nationally ranked athlete with USA Taekwondo. She won a Gold Medal at the USA National Taekwondo Team Trials, earning her a coveted spot on the 2024 National Team representing the United States at the World Championships held in Hong Kong.
She also won the Gold Medal at the U.S. National Taekwondo Championship (Fiesta Challenge Nationals) in 2021, held in San Antonio, TX.
Riya has been training in taekwondo since the age of eight.
Gender Researcher
12 Opinion Editorials
2 Research Abstracts
1 Journal Publication (pending)
Girl Empowerment
Riya is on a mission to assemble the largest repository of wisdom and insights from female leaders, artists, athletes and celebrities from around the world. She tweets about gender issues ranging from pay disparities to women’s participation in parliaments to equal access to healthcare for women around the world.
